The Legacy of Restoration

Creation – Adam and Eve

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Fall – Serpent, Sin

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Redemption – God pursues

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Restoration – Revelation

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The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. So the Lordsaid, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.” But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
- Genesis 6:5-8‍

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“And so violence thrives, secretly nourished by belief in a God who refuses to wield the sword.”
- Miroslav Volf

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Genesis 1

Day 1: Spirit of God was hovering over the water

Day 2 : God made the expanse and it separated between the water that was below and above it.

Day 3: God said “let the water.. gather into one place, and let dry land appear … let the earth sporut with vegetation and fruit trees.”

Day 4: God made two great luminaries: the sun and the moon.

Day 5: Let birds fly over the Earth.

Day 6: Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kind, cattle and beasts of the earth

God makes man in his image, and said to man and woman, “be fruitful and multiply”

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Genesis 8

Day 1: 8:1 God caused a spirit to pass over the earth and the waters subside.

Day 2: 8:2 Springs of the deep were closed, the rains withheld.

Day 3: 8;5,11 The mountain peaks appeared .. the dove returned … with an olive leaf in its mouth

Day 4: 8:11 Seven days… evening

Day 5: 8:7 He sends forth a raven, and it went out back and forth.

Day 6 8:17 Every living that is with you of all flesh, and animals and of all things that creep on earth, bring out with you, and they shall swarm upon the earth and they shall be fruitful and multiply

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God blesses Noah and his sons and tells them “be fruitful and multiply”

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Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.
- 2 Corinthians 5:17-18

Mixer

If you grew up in the church, how did the Sunday School stories, Vacation Bible School, or Summer Camps, impact your faith today?

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Neighborly - Daily Devotional

To get the Daily Devotionals delivered to you every morning, text ‘dailydevotional’ to 97000.

1. In Pastor Pam’s 6/18/22 entry, Hope In God, she reminds us that we have a remedy for our gut wrenching painful times: laser focus on the times we’ve seen God’s goodness. Have you ever kept a prayer journal and gone back to write in how God answered? If not, reflect on some hard times and remind yourself that God was there and record how His goodness made all the difference! Put this into practice with anything new!
2. In Pastor Harry’s 6/14/22 entry, Psalm 38, he reminds us that David is no different than us - sometimes feeling like we are not very good Christians because we mess up too much. How does Isaiah 43:25 give you hope that God doesn’t see you as the sum of your sins? And if your God is willing to remember your transgressions no more, then, likewise, who in your life can you turn around and forgive?

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Sermon Questions

Scriptures: Genesis 6:5-8, Genesis 1 & 8; 2 Corinthians 5:17-18

1. What impacted or challenged you in today’s message?
2. How did today’s message help you to understand that we need a God who judges in order to hold the world together? How does this understanding help you to discard old thinking about Him, and to adopt new thinking about Him?
3. Read the comparison of Genesis 1 and Genesis 8 below. Is this something new to you? What does this say about your flood to restoration story?

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4. Does knowing God does not judge you by how perfect you are, but by how redeemed you are draw you closer to Him? Why are these two concepts contradictory to one another? Why does this matter to your faith?
5. How do stories like Adam & Eve, Noah, and others, help you to trust the metanarrative (larger, overarching story) that God is not bringing a process of destruction in your own flood story, but a process of restoration? How is your expectation of God changing as you carry your pain? What can you do to be a better partner with Him?
6. 2 Corinthians 5:17-18 leads us to the realization that each Christ follower now can help others move from being stuck in their flood stories into God’s process of restoration. What is your story - from creation, to fall, to redemption, to restoration? What does new life (restoration) look like in you, and how can you bring this hope to someone that new life is possible for them too?

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Serve

• Good Neighbor Day is coming up Saturday, July 23! Registration will open soon!

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Pray

Join us in praying for our Vacation Bible School this week: Good Neighbor 2022 - I Can Be More Like Jesus! We have 180+ 3 year olds to 5th graders here this week to spend time getting to know Jesus better, and learning how each of them can be powerful spreaders of the Good Neighbor message!

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